I was really confused when I first read this poem. But, I still appreciated how it sounded when I read it aloud after reading it silently and having no clue what it all meant. What is iconic about New York City are the tall skyscrapers, the brownstones, plentitude of apartment buildings and just everything tall. There is always this constant sound of construction around the city, new office space, new family friendly apartments, newly paved streets. The city is always changing and improving for the constant flux of people coming in and moving out.
The Arts, The City, and Me: Encounters with New York
Professor Drabik – Fall 2014
I really enjoyed reading this poem and I do agree that NYC is always changing usually for the good, however I think this poem kind of brings on the negative aspects of change. The majority of the poem is about comparing the present of the empty construction site and the future opening of the building, whether it be used for commercial or residential purposes. This whole section was full of forward looking statements and thoughts however the end of the poem put in this sense of dread. The statement that what we create “towers over us,” makes us question our advances and developments. What we produce and make can one day possibly harm us. Although unrelated, you can think about global warming, and all the progress we have made had caused us to become very dependent on fossil fuels that emit numerous greenhouse gases. Although society overall benefited from the energy boom, the planet we live on is taking on a irreversible change. The same things that we create, can one day lead to our demise.